Could fan favorite Mata be on his way out and will Luke Shaw be given more of a chance after his performance against CSKA Moscow?

Manchester United are stepping up their efforts to strengthen the squad strength during the January transfer window and according to Calciomercato, United are targetting Inter Milan's Joao Mario.

The report claims, United have identified central midfield area as one of the pain points where they do not have quality replacements and manager Jose Mourinho is keen to add Mario to his squad.

According to Calciomercato, Mourinho shares a close relationship with the Portuguese national side's coaches who have vouched for Mario's move to Old Trafford.

However, given their flying start to the Serie A season, Inter Milan will make it hard for United to negotiate any deal for Mario. However, according to Calciomercato, Inter will ask for Juan Mata in return if any deal is expected to go ahead.

The Spaniard has failed to get consistent playing time under Mourinho which could see him quit the club in January and thereby allow this swap deal to go through.

Savic eyed as Fellaini's replacement

The 22-year-old is tipped for greater things

Manchester United are targetting Lazio's Sergej Milinkovic-Savic as the next big midfield signing as Jose Mourinho grows wary of Marouane Fellaini's stay at Old Trafford, reports Calciomercato.

The reports claim that United scouts were present during Lazio's 2-1 win over Sampdoria where Savi played a part in both the goals by scoring one and assisting the winning goal.

Mourinho believes Fellaini might leave Man United next summer following the contract stand-off between club and the player's representatives. That has not stopped Mourinho from planning his next summer transfer targets.

According to Calciomercato, Milinkovic-Savic could cost United beyond £85million and Mourinho feels that the 22-year-old is ready to step up to the next level and will flourish with Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic overseeing his development.

Danny Rose move put on hold for now?

Shaw was praised by Mourinho after the CSKA match

Jose Mourinho is yet to rule out Luke Shaw from his plans for the second half of this season after the England international made his successful return to competitive football last night against CSKA Moscow.

Shaw was named Man of the Match and showed signs of regaining his best form provided he gets regular playing time under Jose Mourinho.

Following the 2-1 win and qualification to the knockout stages, United manager was all praises for Shaw where he said: "He was waiting a long time for his opportunity, and he managed to stay on for 90 minutes. Honestly, I'm happy with his performance."

"A very positive performance, especially with the balls going forward. Creating a lot, great intensity in his game. Shaw is going to get more chances."

The Daily Mirror think that Mourinho could wait until the end of this season before taking the decision to sign another left back.

An in-form Shaw is good enough for United or any other Premier League side. This could stop the club from spending over £40m on a defender and would instead allow them to focus on signing a winger or central midfielder to boost their chances of catching Manchester City in the race for the league title.